Posted on 11/09/2006 9:46:53 PM PST by Coleus
Discovery step toward developing treatment for various lung diseases
Researchers at the University of Minnesota have, for the first time, coaxed umbilical cord blood stem cells to differentiate into a type of lung cell. The cord blood cells differentiated into a type of lung cell called type II alveolar cells. These cells are responsible for secreting surfactant, a substance which allows the air sacs in the lungs to remain open, allowing air to move in and out of the sacs. The cells are also responsible for helping to repair the airway after injury. "In the future, we may be able to examine cord blood from babies who have lung diseases, such as cystic fibrosis, to do more research to understand how these diseases evolve as well as to develop better medical treatments," said David McKenna, M.D., assistant professor of lab medicine and pathology and medical director of the Clinical Cell Therapy Lab at the University of Minnesota Medical Center, Fairview.
The research paper is currently available online, and will be published in the Nov. 7, 2006, issue of the journal Cytotherapy. Type II alveolar cells develop late in fetal development, which is why some premature babies are born with underdeveloped lungs. The cells and the air sacs as a whole continue to mature and develop through a child's first few years of life. Now the researchers will try to better characterize the cells, so that in the future, the cells could be used as a research tool to better understand lung development and disease. The cells may also be useful as a way to test potential new drugs. To differentiate the lung cells from the cord blood, McKenna and his team first derived the Multi-Lineage Progenitor CellTM (MLPCTM) from umbilical cord blood. This stem cell, which was first isolated and characterized by BioE®, Inc., St. Paul, is a precursor cell that can be expanded in culture, then differentiated into different types of tissue representative of all three embryonic lineages, endoderm, mesoderm and ectoderm. In this series of experiments, McKenna and his group cultured the MLPC and differentiated it into the lung cells, an endoderm-type cell. By testing the cells that grew with various methods, they were able to find cells that exhibited key markers present in type II alveolar cells.
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Recently we covered how researchers are using stem cells to grow new livers, breasts, and even faces. Now scientists at the University of Minnesota have teamed up with BioE Inc., to grow type II alveolar cells from stem cells.
The cord blood cells differentiated into a type of lung cell called type II alveolar cells. These cells are responsible for secreting surfactant, a substance which allows the air sacs in the lungs to remain open, allowing air to move in and out of the sacs. The cells are also responsible for helping to repair the airway after injury. "In the future, we may be able to examine cord blood from babies who have lung diseases, such as cystic fibrosis, to do more research to understand how these diseases evolve as well as to develop better medical treatments," said David McKenna, M.D., assistant professor of lab medicine and pathology and medical director of the Clinical Cell Therapy Lab at the University of Minnesota Medical Center, Fairview.The research paper is currently available online, and will be published in the Nov. 7, 2006, issue of the journal Cytotherapy. Type II alveolar cells develop late in fetal development, which is why some premature babies are born with underdeveloped lungs. The cells and the air sacs as a whole continue to mature and develop through a child's first few years of life. Now the researchers will try to better characterize the cells, so that in the future, the cells could be used as a research tool to better understand lung development and disease. The cells may also be useful as a way to test potential new drugs. To differentiate the lung cells from the cord blood, McKenna and his team first derived the Multi-Lineage Progenitor CellTM (MLPCTM) from umbilical cord blood. This stem cell, which was first isolated and characterized by BioE, Inc., St. Paul, is a precursor cell that can be expanded in culture, then differentiated into different types of tissue representative of all three embryonic lineages, endoderm, mesoderm and ectoderm. Read the full announcement from the University of Minnesota here . . . Check out the press release (.pdf) & the abstract (.pdf)...
I guess the adult stemcell ban was lifted on 11-7-06, I wonder when it goes back into effect.
But ... but ... but I thought that the only kind of Stem cells worth using were from babies who have been slaughtered in order to harvest them!!??
Once again...it's adult stem cells that prove to be useful and affective.
Destroying embryos is a waste of time when the advances in the field keep coming from a different source of cells.
Bump! This is quite an accomplishment!
I could rob a bank or drive drunk and wipe out an entire family, but no matter how many time I say it, it still won't be the right thing to do.
Bump
BackgroundUmbilical cord blood (UCB) has been examined for the presence of stem cells capable of differentiating into cell types of all three embryonic layers (i.e. endo-, ecto- and mesoderm). The few groups reporting success have typically confirmed endodermal potential using hepatic differentiation. We report differentiation of human UCB-derived multipotent stem cells, termed multilineage progenitor cells (MLPC), into respiratory epithelial cells (i.e. type II alveolar cells).MethodsUsing a cell separation medium (PrepaCyte-MLPC; BioE Inc.) and plastic adherence, MLPC were isolated from four of 16 UCB units (American Red Cross) and expanded. Cultures were grown to 80% confluence in mesenchymal stromal cell growth medium (MSCGM; Cambrex BioScience) prior to addition of small airway growth medium (SAGM; Cambrex BioScience), an airway maintenance medium. Following a 3-8-day culture, cells were characterized by light microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, immunofluorescence and reverse transcriptase (RT)-PCR.ResultsMLPC were successfully differentiated into type II alveolar cells (four of four mixed lines; two of two clonal lines). Differentiated cells were characterized by epithelioid morphology with lamellar bodies. Both immunofluorescence and RT-PCR confirmed the presence of surfactant protein C, a protein highly specific for type II cells.DiscussionMLPC were isolated, expanded and then differentiated into respiratory epithelial cells using an off-the-shelf medium designed for maintenance of fully differentiated respiratory epithelial cells. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time human non-embryonic multipotent stem cells have been differentiated into type II alveolar cells. Further studies to evaluate the possibilities for both research and therapeutic applications are necessary.
Tell the voters in Kansas City and St. Louis this. Those who voted south of the Missouri appreciate things like this; however, the urban rat bastards would rather suck the life out of embryos to create a bunch of tumors.
Bump
There is so much good news about cord blood. Thank you for posting this!!
"Tell the voters in Kansas City and St. Louis this. Those who voted south of the Missouri appreciate things like this; however, the urban rat bastards would rather suck the life out of embryos to create a bunch of tumors."
It seems they want SO BAD for dead embryos to proven "useful" - and time after time they are proven wrong.
How long is it going to take? Another 50 yrs. of embryonic stem cell research producing harmful useless tumors?
This has been going on long enough already....the hope is in adult stem cells folks! This shouldn't be a partisan issue - it's just plain 'ole common sense.
It resembles the classic definition of insanity; which is doing the same thing over and over again, while expecting a different result.
They will continue to fail with the embryos until we are dead. It's useless to continue.
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